Chong’s bill should be fast-tracked

Guelph Mercury

Federal government House Leader Peter Van Loan should consider going beyond issuing an apology over an ugly moment in the House of Commons Thursday.

Van Loan offered an apology Friday after crossing the floor in The House and angrily confronting NDP House Leader Nathan Cullen and Opposition Leader Thomas Mulcair. A furious, cussing Van Loan only became calm and returned to his side of The House when ushered there by Defence Minister Peter MacKay.

Van Loan apologized solely for his use of “an inappropriate word” and called for Cullen to apologize for doing the same.

This was more than a disappointing spraying of unparliamentary language. This was an elected official resorting to physically confronting one of his peers in the national legislature. It was also the latest evidence that decorum in The House is at a disgraceful level.

Van Loan should approach the other house leaders – perhaps with MacKay in tow to keep him in check – and work out a way to fast-track Wellington-Halton Hills MP Michael Chong’s pending private member’s bill designed to improve the level of respect within The House among MPs.

Chong moved a notion in the past term of this government to try to improve MP and party behaviour during Question Period. It was widely supported but died when the last session ended. He has indicated he’ll revive the effort this session. But he needs to wait for his slot in the randomly set private member’s bill rotation to have a chance to do this and his turn remains months away.

Van Loan should go to bat to try to have Chong move up on the order. If he can’t work a deal with the other parties, he should do what he can to shuffle the order of such bills to be presented within his own caucus.

The Van Loan confrontation speaks to the need to consider changes such as what Chong has suggested. Canadians shouldn’t stand for such deplorable behaviour in The House to continue.